GhOST StORY:x
by Zenaga the Sea Serpent
Summary: Midorikawa Retasu was a nice girl with an innocent crush- Pai. Having finally been able to spend time with him, her feelings were slowly returned. Then, she drowned. As Pai began to find out more about Retasu's life, he also learned more about her death.
1. Prologue

_The story that you will find written on these pages... the story that I am about to tell you... might seem a bit strange in nature, and somehow... typical. However, I assure you that disappointment will not grasp you in its dark clutches. Most of this story... the story of Midorikawa Retasu, is told mostly in a place known as Okumora _ _Daifuzoku__ Junior High School, in the city of Tokyo Japan. Life seemed to be going well for Retasu. She had a job, she had __acquired a few friends, and had even begun to fall in love. Yes... things were working out just fine for our heroine..._

Until she drowned in the school pool.

After strange findings in her corpse, undercover research begun, and a certain bit of information that would normally be top secret, was given to an outsider.

Kurogawa Pai, an upperclassman of Retasu's from the High School branch. He began to spend more and more time around the pool that was said to be haunted, and there...

He found most... mysterious things.

The players in this tale of woe are as follows...

**Kurogawa, Pai. At the age of 17, he entered his third year of education at Okumora Daifuzoku High School, and became slightly acquainted with Midorikawa Retasu.**

** Midorikawa, Retasu. Drowned at the age of 14. Mysterious articles of evidence were found in her body. Before her corpse was found, she began to fall in love with Kurogawa Pai.**

Please, sit back, grab a cup of tea, and read what has been written on these pages. I do hope that you enjoy it.


	2. And so it begins

_He watched, unable to do anything. He watched as the air bubbles escaped her lips, never to return. Her eyes were wide, and her tears merged with the water. Her hands reached for the surface, grasping for the feel of a soft breeze tickling her wet skin._

_And then, there was nothing. "Pai!"_

Pai almost wanted to strangle his little brother. This had become a bad habit of Taruto's; getting up early, just so that he could enter Pai's room- without permission, I'll have you know- and scream his name loudly into his older brother's ear until he woke up. "Shit!" Pai swore as he rubbed his ear. "Get the hell out of here before I kill you, brat!" He growled as he threw back the covers and Taruto ran out of the room cackling rather maniacally.

Then, the other pest entered. "Pai-o-nii-sa-ma…" Kisshu purred out the syllables as he leaned in Pai's doorway. "It's rather unkind to swear at children that only come up to your waist." Kisshu smirked as Pai stripped off his night-shirt. "At least, that's what Dad would say." Kisshu said as he examined his fingernails.

"Good morning to you too. Now leave before I do something truly horrible to you." Pai growled as he walked over to his closet. Kisshu raised up his hands defensively.

"I'm going."

Fantastic. This day was going to be one of those days that he was hoping it would be better than the others, and then it would turn out to be just as shitty as the other days. And, on top of that, he was having weird dreams about underclassmen drowning in the school pool. Lovely. Pai shuffled down the hall, attempting to walk out his grogginess. What was her name again? Midorikawa… Retasu, was it? Oh well. It's not something that he would have to remember today.

* * *

"Umm… Kurogawa-senpai…?" Shit. The universe just loved proving him wrong.

"Oh… Midorikawa-san, was it?" Pai breathed deeply as he hoped that he got it right. Not that he cared. Not really…

"Yeah. Midorikawa Retasu." She said as she looked at her feet and blushed slightly. "I was wondering if you would let me interview you every day for this next week." Pai raised his eyebrows as he started watering the next set of plants.

"What for?" He inquired as Retasu smiled slightly.

"It's a project for my club."

"What's your club?"

"The Union of Friends."

"That sounds stupid."

Retasu looked surprised by his response. This was Pai's normal pattern- a girl would use some sort of indirect way of asking him out, Pai would say something rude, and then Voila! One less irritation for him to deal with.

"What is the purpose your club's project?" Pai asked as he returned his attention back to the school garden.

"Checking the emotional temperatures of the upperclassmen!" Retasu said brightly as Pai looked at her in shock. What was this sudden change of attitude?

"And something about me makes you think that I'm emotionally unwell?" Pai growled as he switched off the hose and Retasu blushed and lowered her head.

"No. The purpose of this project is to see how the upperclassmen are feeling, and to help them through their struggles…" Retasu said as she raised her head again, as if to appear proud, causing Pai's frown to deepen. "Do you think that it's alright for students to go through their lives without any reasonable emotional support? Do you think that it's okay for people to be crushed under peer pressure, to be prevented from blossoming to their true potential?"

"That's not what I-"

"The Union of Friends is there for those poor students who don't give themselves a second chance at life. We're giving it our all to make the world a better place." A smiled returned to Retasu's face, and then quickly disappeared again. "Oh, I'm sorry. Did I say too much?"

Pai looked shocked. This was not your regular pest. No… she wasn't a pest. Pai smirked slightly as he began to put the hose away. "You're insane, aren't you?" He asked as he turned around to face her again. She looked slightly taken aback. "If it's really that important to you, than I guess that I will help with your project." He said as he abruptly raised his index finger. "But- I'm not telling you about my personal life, are we clear?" Retasu paused, looking at the ground.

"Well… that kind of defeats the purpose of the exercise… but… of course! Thank you very much!"

No… she was far more than a pest. She was a girl who had her eyes set on a goal, and wouldn't let it out of her sight.

"Does this Sunday at 3:00 sound good?" Retasu asked as she pulled out a notebook and began to write.

"At the library…?" Pai suggested as he leaned against a tree.

"Sounds good to me."


	3. The Ultimate Poker Face

There were the relative pests, the school pests, the job pests, and other various types of pests.

Then, there was Retasu.

He had found that Retasu was by far the most irritating, clumsy, and somehow bossy pest he had ever met. He didn't hate her though; far from it. She had been interviewing him for the past few days now, digging deeper and deeper into his personal life. He didn't know what his emotional temperature was like right now though, since she refused to tell him.

"So, how has your day been so far?" She asked softly as she opened her notebook. The thing was about Retasu, no matter how rude Pai was to her, she seemed to just interpret it as another example of his unstable emotional standing. He found that to be the most annoying thing about her. So why? Why did he continue to go to these stupid meetings?

"Well, it started out the same way as it usually does- my personal brats that love irritating me, waking me up with screaming, and telling me just how stupid and un-elegant I am." That was another thing about her. You just couldn't lie, or resist telling her every detail of your personal life. She didn't respond to that sort of thing, she just nodded and wrote down everything that you would say. That's what made it so easy to tell her everything. Even un-wanted and embarrassing details like what time you got up to piss in the morning.

"Then, I went to school, watered the garden, and had a first year high school student ask me out. I rejected her, as usual." Pai said as he looked boredly out the window. His eyes flickered back to her, wanting to see her reaction. Nothing, just that irritatingly pleasant smile on her small, soft, plump lips… Pai blushed and turned back to the window.

"Okay, next?" Retasu said as she stopped writing and looked up.

"Then, I went to class, had my test returned to me, discovered that I got a pretty low score." Pai smirked slightly.

"What was the score?" She asked.

"98 out of 100," Pai said as he tapped the table lightly with his fingertips, waiting for her reaction.

"Okay, and then?" Shit. This girl was like a blank slate. Oh, how he wanted to piss her off, make her make some kind of snide remark.

"Most of my classes went the same way. I had another girl ask me out after school, when I was on my way here." Pai said as he tapped his fingers in irritation. Retasu glanced up at Pai's face and then took a note.

"Must be hard being so popular, Kurogawa-senpai." Retasu said, her expression remaining the same. Pai stared at her.

"Yeah…" Now he wasn't the one trying to get a reaction. "I guess it is." He hated showing her an expression. He _never_ expressed his emotions to _anyone_.

Everyone must want a poker face like Retasu's.

* * *

**A/N:** When I posted this chapter so long ago, someone mentioned that 98 is a low score, but I forgot to mention that it's 98/100, therefore making it a high score. Just accentuating how I've made Pai out to be an arrogant bastard in this story.

Thanks!

-Zenaga the Sea Serpent


	4. Maybe Kisshu's right

"You are an extremely depressed person."

That was the first thing Pai was told when he arrived at school that day. "What?" He pretended not to hear what she had said.

"I said that you're an extremely depressed person." Retasu said gently.

"And… this is supposed to make me happy?" Pai inquired as he pulled out the hose.

"Perhaps." Retasu responded with a slight smile as she turned on the water. Pai raised his left eyebrow at this. Was she… flirting?

"Why is this good news?" He asked as he turned his attention to the garden. Retasu giggled, and Pai almost immediately knew what was coming.

"It means that you get to spend the next week with me, going to fun places."

Pai paused at this answer and turned off the hose. "I'm going to spend the next week doing _what_ now?" Retasu frowned and furrowed her brows.

"Are you having hearing problems today, Kurogawa-senpai?"

"I sure hope I am."

"That's not a very friendly response."

"I'm often told that I'm not a very friendly person."

"So, anyway, where do you want to go first?"

"You aren't really listening to me, are you?"

"Huh? What did you say?"

"My point exactly…"

* * *

Retasu had asked him on a date, and he had accepted. What?

He didn't know how exactly he ended up like this, since he had for many years, been avoiding this kind of situation. But, then again, he just couldn't say no to Retasu. Maybe he should've started to write down all the annoying things about her. Then, he would probably have a full notebook. Lovely.

"Kurogawa-senpai, you have ice cream on your nose."

This was by far, the most embarrassing thing he had ever experienced. And, he was going to have to do this for the next week. You know, because of the whole 'Can't say no to Retasu' thing. Damn. He'd rather be hanging upside down, naked on the monkey bars, screaming 'I lost my loincloth!' than be in this situation. He didn't even want to contemplate what color his face was right now.

"Oh dear!" Retasu looked at her watch and frowned. "I'm going to be late for work if I don't hurry…" She turned to Pai and bowed. "I'm really sorry, but I have to go to work. I'll see you tomorrow!" _Hallelujah! I don't have to see your irritatingly adorable face for the rest of the day! I think I almost want to cry, I'm so happy._

"I'll walk you to your job." _What? That's definitely what I didn't want to say._

"Really?" Retasu blushed, and smiled slightly. "Thank you so much!" Now he really wouldn't be able to say no.

"No problem. I'll do this the rest of the week too if you want." If he had a gun, Pai might as well have shot himself in the head. Retasu stared at him incredulously, and then a giddy smile broke out onto her face.

"You're really a nice guy, aren't you?" Pai somehow found himself offering her his arm, which she gladly took. Whoopee flippin' do.

* * *

"No way in _hell_ am I going in there!" Pai growled as Retasu gave Pai a pleading look. What was she pleading for him to do? She wanted him to go into the most girly café he had ever seen. "Please come in for just a minute. Akasaka-san is the best chef in the whole world." She said softly. "If I go in there, it'll burn my skin off because of that horrible paint job!" Pai turned bright red. "It's far too moe!" He cried as Retasu stared at him. "You know some weird words."

"Retasu, is that you?" A red haired girl burst out of Café Mew Mew, wearing something that confirmed Pai's suspicion of a moe infestation. "Ah! Ichigo-san!" Retasu smiled as Ichigo blinked very slowly, staring at Retasu's arm that rested on the arm of this mysterious young man. And then, this Ichigo person turned bright red. "O-oh my! Is this your boyfriend, Retasu?" She inquired as she tugged at Retasu's sleeve. "We're not going out!" Pai and Retasu cried in unison as they both began to blush.

"Oh?" Ichigo nodded her head to the side slightly. "You're not?" She asked, puzzled by this. And now, Pai would have to put up with some ditz. "No, we're not. Now please help me get him into the café." Retasu hissed as she turned even redder. Ichigo quickly recovered from her brief moment of stupidity, and grabbed Pai's wrist. "No!" He growled as he attempted to pull away from them, but instead, he found out that Ichigo was extremely strong, leading to the result of having no escape.

Then, he just gave up. As he was lead to one of the chairs inside the café, he took a moment to examine the interior of the 'pink palace,' he decided it should be called. It was indeed, very pink, and also very full. After a few minutes of resisting the urge to puke, Retasu returned with a menu in hand, wearing and outfit similar to Ichigo's. Pai immediately blushed and buried his face in the menu, attempting to hide his face's color.

Retasu left to answer the demands of some of the other customers as Pai eyed the words printed the paper. Once he decided on a fruit tart and milk tea, he glanced over toward the kitchen, where Retasu was talking to some blonde guy who was leaning against the wall. Pai immediately started to hate him. After a minute or so, Retasu returned and he placed his order.

"Oh, and, by the way… who was that guy that you were talking to?"

"That's Shirogane Ryou. He's my boss."

"Oh, I see."

* * *

"I'm home." Pai called out as he slipped off his shoes. Not long after he arrived home, he was suddenly sent flying backwards, due to the fact that his youngest brother, Taruto, had felt the urge to tackle him. "Welcome home, Pai!" He cried as he stuck a clothes pin on Pai's nose. "What the hell?" Pai growled as he kicked Taruto off him and pulled off the clothes pin. "Do that again, and I'll kill you!" So, of course, Taruto did it again. Pai glared at him as he pulled off the clothes pin and watched Taruto run off, cackling once again.

"You've become soft." Kisshu commented as he slinked into the room and smirked, his hands on his hips.

"Shut up."

"Oh, I know! It must be a girlfriend!"

"Shut _up_."

"That's where you've been going the past few days, right?"

"Kisshu…"

"Have you kissed yet?"

"This is your last warning…"

"Ha. Then again, knowing you and your reputation, you've probably already done it. Heh…"

Soon afterwards, Kisshu's screams echoed throughout the house.


	5. Momomiya Ichigo

The more time he had spent with her, the more he had begun to realize that whenever she laughed at something stupid that he had done, the more he liked her mockery. The more she twirled around, her long braids whipping through the air, the more he wanted to untie them and run his fingers through her hair. And the more she spoke to him the more he became transfixed by her lips that he now wanted to kiss.

Then, there was the phone call.

"Hello?" Pai answered, the boredom annoyingly clear in his voice.

"Ah, Pai-kun! I almost didn't recognize your voice!" Pai narrowed his eyes.

"That's a lie, Jun-san. You knew immediately who you were speaking to." He said as Jun chuckled on the other end of the phone.

"As sharp as usual, Pai-kun." He said as Pai rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, I suspect that you're attempting to contact one of my idiotic family members that probably ended up in some sort of trouble?" He began to examine his nails as there was a pause on the other end or the line.

"Actually, Pai-kun, I was trying to contact you." Jun replied as Pai looked up. He could tell that it was something serious from his uncle's tone of voice.

"What did I do to attract the attention of the police?" Pai could almost see the smile on Jun's face.

"You didn't do anything, so don't worry." He answered reassuringly. "But, there has been a death." Pai stared at the door, wondering if it perhaps had the answer to everything.

"May I ask who?"

Once he heard the name, his gaze that the door had been transformed into one of disbelief.

"I'm sorry, but could you please repeat that?"

That name again, echoing over the phone. At this point, Taruto and Ao Fukai had gathered at the entrance of the hallway, observing Pai curiously. After a few more minutes of conversation, Pai hung up and walked towards the front door. Ao Fukai followed him, his long black hair flowing behind him. "Where are you going?" He asked as Pai slipped on his shoes.

"Out." He responded as Ao Fukai raised an eyebrow.

"What about school?"

Pai looked up at the ceiling for a minute before responding. "I'm skipping it. It's probably canceled anyway." He said as he stood up and slung his messenger bag over his shoulder. "You should be getting a call any minute now." Ao Fukai narrowed his eyes and grabbed his son's wrist. "Hold on, just why do you think that you can skip school?" He demanded as Pai slowly turned around to glare at him. "Imagine that you had recently befriended someone who you ended up really liking, spending a lot of time with, and then decided that you _really_ liked them."

Ao Fukai narrowed his eyes further. Pai looked back to the door. "Now, imagine that they were suddenly ripped out of your life, due to the fact that they'd drown in the school pool. If such a thing happened, would you really want to go to school?" He growled as Ao Fukai just stood there, stunned. After a moment, he released Pai's arm, and the recently released reached for the doorknob.

"Where are you going to go?" Ao Fukai asked as he intertwined his hands together.

"To the hospital. Jun-san asked me to meet him there." Pai responded as he turned the handle and opened the door.

"Is there anything you want before you go?" The older man asked as Pai shook his head.

"No, I'll be fine."

"I'm sorry, Pai."

"Don't be."

* * *

"Oh! Hi there! Kurogawa-san, right?"

Oh god. Just who he wanted to see. Super Ditz.

"Yes. Momomiya-san, right?" Pai responded as Ichigo smiled brightly at him.

"Yup. That's me, Momomiya Ichigo at your service!" She gave him a two fingered salute. Pai's expression remained the same; un-amused. Ichigo frowned as the train began to rattle around.

"You aren't really very expressive, are you?" Pai said nothing. Then, Ichigo's face lit up again. "Oh yeah! I remember what I was going to ask you!" _You were going to ask me something?_

"Would you happen to know an idiot called Kurogawa Kisshu?" Ichigo asked as Pai looked at her blankly.

"He's my brother." Ichigo blinked slowly.

"Really? You two look nothing alike." Pai glanced out the window at the buildings flying past.

"We're not related by blood." He muttered as Ichigo let out a small 'Oh'. There was a moment of awkward silence as the train stopped and people got off the train while others got on.

"Actually, Kisshu and I are going to hang out with some friends today." Ichigo said as Pai raised an eyebrow as he glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. He wasn't entirely surprised to find the gay idiot and Super Ditz well acquainted.

"Who else is going?" He asked uninterestedly as he looked back out the window.

"Ryou and Retasu are going too. We're making it a double date." She said as Pai whipped around to stare at her.

She didn't know. Oh god, she didn't _know_. Pai attempted to keep his cool, but only discovered that he was starting to sweat. How exactly are you supposed to tell someone that their friend died? Ichigo turned her head to the right slightly and blinked at him. "Are you okay, Kurogawa-san?" She asked worriedly before grinning wickedly. "Are you jealous?" She asked as Pai started to get a headache. Whoever came up with this sick joke, it wasn't funny.

"Momomiya-san…? You… you… uh… you don't…" Pai hated it when he repeated a word several times in a row. Ichigo looked worried again.

"You really don't look okay. Are you sick?" Pai slowly ran his fingers through his hair as his eyes darted about.

"I... I… Midorikawa-san is…" Ichigo stared at him.

"Retasu is? Retasu is what?" He couldn't say it. He just couldn't. He clasped his hand to his mouth as he fought back that stinging feeling in his eyes. After a minute, he cleared his throat and looked down at Ichigo again.

"Do you have a pen?" He asked, keeping his voice calm. Ichigo quickly began to shuffle through her bag, soon to produce a pen and hand it to Pai.

"Thanks." He mumbled as he pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and began to write. Once he finished, he handed the piece of paper to Ichigo, his hand shaking furiously. Once she read the paper, she stared at it for a minute, before she looked up at Pai and smiled weakly.

"That's not very funny, Kurogawa-san." She said as her face started to become as pale as Pai's.

"It's true. I got a call this morning. I'm headed over to the hospital right now. They want me to see the… um…" He paused as Ichigo looked at her feet.

"Body?" Pai shivered slightly.

"Yeah."

Ichigo slowly began to sob as Pai began to feel the need to cry as well. She threw her arms around him and began to cry into his chest as he wrapped his arms around her as well. Pai didn't know why, but he suddenly realized that this was the first girl he had ever willingly hugged. Quite frankly, he didn't mind it that much, even if it was Super Ditz.

* * *

**A/N: **And thus, the depressing stuff starts. Have fun, kiddies.

-Zenaga the Sea Serpent


	6. She's an angry lady

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tokyo Mew Mew. At all. Jun is mine though. xD**

**

* * *

**"_Are you okay, Retasu?"_

"_Mm… yeah, I'm fine now. Thank you, Ichigo-san."_

_Ichigo watched her for a moment as Retasu wiped away her tears._

"_Why are you doing this?"_

_Retasu turned to her. "Huh?"_

_Ichigo grasped Retasu's hand that held the handkerchief._

"_Why are you doing this? Why are you trying to understand him? Why are you trying to make him smile?" She cried._

_Retasu paused before smiling at her sadly._

"_He's like me."_

"_Eh?"_

_Retasu looked out the window, out at the stars._

"_He seems so lonely and sad."_

_Ichigo stared at Retasu as she watched her eyes reflect the moon glowing in the night sky._

"_He doesn't want anyone special in his life. He's afraid to express his true feelings."_

_She turned back to Ichigo._

"_If he doesn't have someone that he knows he can cry too, then he'll inflict damage on himself, damage that cannot be undone."_

_Retasu shifted her sleeve slightly, covering her scars. She smiled brightly at Ichigo as she stroked her face._

"_I'd like to be his very own Ichigo."_

_Ichigo began to feel her eyes water._

"_You're so brave, Retasu. I envy you."_

_

* * *

_She couldn't be brave now, though.

Ichigo had always said that she'd be there for Retasu, no matter what happened.

Now, Retasu was laid out on a metal table, her body cold and naked, sprawled out for people she didn't know to dissect her and find out just why she died. Why hadn't she been there?

"_Please, let me see the body!"_

_Jun looked at her gravely, blocking the path to where her deceased friend was._

"_I'm sorry, but I cannot. The only one who is allowed to see Midorikawa-san's body at the moment is Pai-kun."_

_Ichigo glared at him._

"_He bribed you, didn't he?" She growled as Jun looked taken aback._

"_That sick Pai bribed you, didn't he?" She screamed at him as Pai glared at her._

"_Just what are you accusing me of, Momomiya-san?" He growled as she glared back at him._

"_You know perfectly well what I'm suggesting, you bastard."_

_Pai narrowed his eyes as Jun stepped in between the two._

"_Please calm down, you two." He glanced at Ichigo. "And I assure you, Momomiya-san, there was no bribery or any other such thing that went on. It's simply the fact that we trust his intelligence and confidentiality." Ichigo glared at him._

"_And I'm not trustworthy?"_

"…_I'm sorry."_

_She glanced between the two of them for a moment before she backed off and sat down in the chair._

"_So be it…"_

_

* * *

_Pai now stood outside the room where Retasu's body was being kept, Jun beside him. He took in a deep breath before reaching out for the doorknob. Jun watched him as he did this, his eyes flickering. Pai slowly turned the knob and cracked the door open. It was warm inside. He took another deep breath as he stepped forward, pushing the door further open. He stopped as he caught sight of the body.

He had expected her to be naked. He didn't know why, but he did. Maybe it was his sick teenage mind at work. The necrophilia side of his sick teenage mind, that is. Pai was surprised to find that Retasu was not, in fact, naked. Actually, she was dressed in a hospital gown, and the rest of her body was covered by a blanket. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought that she was just sleeping.

He probably only would have thought this if she wasn't deathly pale, of course. And if he hadn't gotten a call from his uncle, announcing that she was dead. Jun cleared his throat slightly. Pai slowly walked over to Retasu, quivering slightly. He didn't stop until he had reached the side of the bed and was looking down at her face. He smiled slightly. Even dead, Retasu was downright gorgeous.

Pai would have run his fingers through her hair if he hadn't felt that it would be inappropriate, and if he hadn't been frozen stiff. Pai felt tears begin to sting his eyes. He quickly forced them back, not wanting to cry in front of his uncle and Retasu. Looking at her, Pai wondered why he didn't notice her before. He'd seen her every now and then in the halls, but he never really paid any attention. He thought that she had said 'hi' to him once, but he might have confused her with someone else.

He certainly wouldn't mistake her for anyone else now though. Only the two-weeks-ago Pai would do that. Two weeks ago…

He realized then, that he had only really known her for two weeks.

He stared at Retasu's closed eyes. Why did they have him come here? Why not ask her family? They should be allowed to see her, right? Compared to them, Pai was a complete stranger, simply a face in the crowd. Her family didn't even know him. What had Jun said to Ichigo in the hall? 'The only one allowed to see Midorikawa-san right now is Pai'? Why? Why him? He glanced around him. Why didn't they take her to the morgue? She was dead, right? And why wasn't she naked? Why were they trying to keep the body warm?

Then, Pai heard it.

That small beeping sound on the heart monitor.

He slowly turned around and stared at it. A steady pulse.

Oh. My. God.

He then turned to Jun, his eyes wide. Jun smiled. "That took you longer than usual."

"No, fucking, way."

"Yes, fucking way."

Pai covered his mouth in shock.

"Pai-kun, Midorikawa Retasu is alive."


	7. The Living Dead

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tokyo Mew Mew… OOH. My heart burns. D;**

**

* * *

**"Alive?"

Pai repeated the word, dumbfounded. He was absolutely speechless. Jun placed his hands on his hips as he walked over to Pai's side, looking at Retasu's apparently not dead body. "We were pretty shocked too." Pai began to stammer.

"Bu-but you said that she drowned!" He exclaimed at Jun looked at him.

"She did."

Pai waved a hand furiously at Retasu. "So, you're telling me that dead people have pulses and that you refer to them as 'alive'?" He cried as Jun chuckled.

"No, she is alive."

"But she drowned!"

"Yes, but she's alive."

Pai stared at him and then slumped down into a corner. "What the fuck?" Jun walked over and sat next to him, looking up at the hospital bed.

"We don't understand it either. Everyone knows that when you drown, you're dead. It's a pretty simple fact of life." Pai's gaze didn't move away from the bed.

"But she's alive..." He muttered as Jun chuckled again.

"Yeah, we have absolutely no idea why, but she is." Pai blinked.

"Why are you telling just me?" Jun turned to him.

"We know that you can keep a secret." He said as Pai began to twiddle his thumbs.

"What about her family?" He asked as Jun looked away again.

"We don't need to make a fuss."

"You intend to keep them in the dark?"

"Yes."

"That's cruel. They deserve to know."

"The world's a cruel place."

Pai let out a laugh.

"Yeah, but doesn't a parent get to know that their daughter's alive?"

"Not in this case."

"What are you going to do when she wakes up?"

"You mean, _if_ she wakes up."

Pai stayed silent after hearing this.

"At this point, the chances of her waking up are very slim."

Pai got up and went to Retasu's side again. He stayed there for a few minutes before walking over to the door. "Hey, Pai-kun…?" Jun called as Pai stopped, his hand on the knob. "Did you love her?" He asked as Pai paused.

"Yes. I loved her more than any of you guys, anyway." Jun smiled as Pai opened the door and walked out into the hall.

* * *

Pai half fell, half sat on the bench next to Ichigo as he handed her a cup of coffee. There was a minute of silence before Ichigo spoke to him. It had been the first time since she had yelled at him in the hall well over an hour ago. "How was Retasu?" She asked as Pai took a sip.

"Very dead." He lied as she stared vacantly at the cup, pondering.

"She really loved you, you know." Pai nearly choked on his coffee. He sat coughing for a minute as Ichigo continued to stare at her cup. "She pushed herself so much to be with you." Ichigo made a circular motion with the top of her cup as Pai wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

He stared up at the sky, taking in all the blueness of it. Ichigo turned to him. "Did you love her too?" Pai raised his cup to his lips, quickly deciding that it was a choking hazard, and returned it to where it had rested in his lap.

"She was a real pain in the ass." He said bluntly as Ichigo glared at him, popping the lip off her coffee in preparation to throw it on him. "But, I think that somewhere along the way, I fell in love with her." This put the lid back on the cup and on Ichigo's coffee wrath.

Ichigo turned her gaze back to her cup as Pai decided to take a sip.

"It's too bad that she's never going to wake up now. You two would have made such a lovely couple." Pai stared sadly at the trash can across from them. _It's too bad that she's never going to wake up…_ Pai wanted to tell her that it was possible, that she was going to wake up, but he couldn't. He himself had begun to stop believing it.

"Oh! There you are, Ichigo-chan!"

Pai glared up at the approaching figure of his brother. Kisshu froze when he saw Pai and his menacing glare. He glanced over at Ichigo. He quickly made a bad connection when he saw the tear tracks on her cheeks and saw her with his supposedly evil, heartbreaking brother. "Pai, you asshole! What did you do to her?" Pai covered his eyes and leaned his head back in exasperation.

"Fuck off, would you? I'm not in the mood to deal with your stupid antics." Kisshu flung himself at Pai, grabbing the front of his shirt.

"I said, what did you do to her?" Kisshu cried as people glanced in their direction.

Ichigo had popped off the lid of the coffee once again and flung it onto Kisshu, causing him to cry out. "Would you just shut up?" She exclaimed as he stared at her. Kisshu had seen Ichigo angry plenty of times, but never this angry. Pai was just as impressed as his brother. Kisshu slowly straighten up again and looked at Ichigo.

"What's going on?" He asked quietly.

"You flung yourself at me and accused me of doing something to your girlfriend. That's what's going on." Both Kisshu and Ichigo whipped around to glare at him, both of their faces bright red. Pai raised his hands defensively.

"Sorry. I assumed that you two were going out." He said as he folded his arms together. Kisshu turned back to Ichigo.

"What happened?" Ichigo turned to stare back at him, and then back at Pai.

"You haven't told him?" She asked as Pai closed his eyes.

"He wasn't home when I got the phone call." Kisshu stared between the two of them.

"What phone call? What's going on?" Ichigo stared at him for a minute before she slipped her hand into her pocket and pulled out the piece of paper that Pai had given her earlier.

Kisshu read it. Kisshu's expression didn't change. Kisshu looked as if he were frozen in place. Kisshu was shocked.

Pai got up and walked over to Ichigo, grabbing Kisshu on the way. "Come on. We'll walk you home." Ichigo got up and walked along next to Pai as he somehow got Kisshu to move. They didn't say a thing the whole trip.


	8. A Tzuris and Cheesecake

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tokyo Mew Mew already! DDD: Mein herz brennt. TT~TT**

**-gets weird looks-**

**

* * *

**"I wonder if this is the start of a tzuris."

Ichigo gave him a weird look. "A what now…?" Pai looked up at her, blinking.

"A tzuris," He repeated as she did a motion that indicated that she had no idea what the hell he was talking about.

"What's a tzuris?" She asked as he pulled a dictionary out of his bag and handed it to her. She stared at it for a moment as took a bite of his Tiramisu. "Can't you just tell me?" She asked as he sighed, put down his fork and crossed his arms.

"Tzuris; T-z-u-r-i-s, variant of Tsuris, T-s-u-r-i-s. A series of misfortunes; a state or period of suffering; problems. _Tsuris with his wife, his landlord, and his boss._" Pai said as he picked up his fork again and Ichigo let out a small 'oh'. She still found it slightly disturbing that he could recite sections from the dictionary at any given time. There was a moment of silence, in which Ichigo began to devour her cheesecake. Mmm… delicious, heavenly cheesecake. Cheesecake of much godly, supreme awesomeness. Law of Physics defying cheesecake.

"I love cheesecake more than life itself." Pai looked up from his coffee to stare at her, his left eyebrow raised. Ichigo quickly realized that she had said that out loud, and returned to silently eating her divine cheesecake, her face bright red. "Well, I love Tiramisu more than life itself." He said. Ichigo looked up at him, her face still bright red. "Do you live on coffee?" She asked. "I live _for_ coffee. It is my fuel. I cannot have all-nighters without coffee. I am sexually attracted to coffee. Coffee is my way of life." He said, somehow managing to keep a straight face while taking a sip of his coffee.

Ichigo stared at him. "Speaking of all-nighters…"

Pai set down his coffee. "Yes, I did pull one last night. I read the dictionary for the seventh time."

Ichigo gaped at him. "What kind of drugs are you taking?"

Pai raised up his mug. "Coffee. It's highly addictive."

Ichigo furrowed her brow. "I see." She took another bite of her cheesecake. "What makes you think that a tzuris might have began?" She asked as Pai set down his coffee again.

"Begun is the variation that you would use in that sentence. And I do believe that a tzuris has _begun_, do to the fact that Retasu died, and then you asked me out for tea and cake. This will, by the way, cause Kisshu to attempt to kill me."

Ichigo didn't really like how Pai was able to talk about Retasu's death so casually. Yes, it had been a month, but even so. The wounds were still fresh. He had said that he loved her, didn't he? Was that a lie? Ichigo realized that Pai was watching her, his expression blank.

"You're unsettled." He said bluntly as Ichigo stared at him.

"Excuse me?"

Pai took another sip of his coffee, his gaze never leaving her. "Are you disturbed that I can talk about Midorikawa-san's death so easily?"

_Oh my god. How the hell did he do that? Can he read minds?_ "I'm good at reading people's expressions." He said as he set down his mug. "I never was able to read Midorikawa-san though. I don't know why." He said, looking out the window at the falling leaves. Ichigo took at sip of her tea, not saying anything for a while. "It's because she practiced." She said softly as Pai turned to stare at her. "What?" She looked up into his eyes. She found it funny. Right now, Pai looked like a little boy, lost on the road of life.

"She was right. You seem lonely and sad."

* * *

"What kind of girl was Midorikawa-san?" Pai asked the girl who he stood in front of. She sat thinking for a minute, tapping her pencil against her brow.

"I dunno."

"It's 'don't know'."

"Whatever."

"You'll never make it in the world if you cannot talk right."

"Do you want me to answer the question or not?"

Pai stayed silent.

"I guess she was kinda shy. She didn't talk much. I never noticed her all that much." She said as he resisted the urge to correct her speech.

"Thank you, Kayuki-san." He said as he turned and left the middle school classroom. Kayuki stared after him for a moment before turning to one of her friends.

"I just don't understand Kurogawa-sempai these days." Her classmate let out a laugh.

"Did anyone _ever_ understand Kurogawa-sempai?" Kayuki let out a giggle at this.

"I guess not."

He decided that his next step would be to ask the student council about Retasu's club. Then, he could go around, asking the club members about Retasu, due to the fact that he was on a mission to learn as much as this being known as Retasu. "Ah! Kurogawa-san! Have you come back to rejoin the council?" A young man greeted Pai cheerily. Pai's expression stayed blank.

"Shove it, Kanzaki." He said as he walked up to the desk. He seriously hated the fact that he couldn't be polite for half a second. Kanzaki frowned.

"What's got you in a bad mood?" He asked as Pai slammed his hand down on the table.

"I'm not here for small talk. I'm here to get information on a club." Kanzaki shrank back at Pai's harsh tone. This is why Pai had quit the council. They all just pissed him off so much.

"Which club?" Kanzaki asked quietly as Pai sighed and stood up straight.

"The… uh… Union of Friends…" God… he was getting embarrassed just saying the name. Kanzaki couldn't stop a small grin from crawling onto his face as he heard Mr. Antisocial say the name.

"Hold on a second. I'll go check the records."

A few minutes later, Kanzaki returned, frowning. "I'm sorry, Kurogawa-san, but there's no record for a club called… 'The Union of Friends'." He said with a snicker as Pai glared at him.

"You're such a useless piece of shit." He growled as Kanzaki smiled brightly.

"Is there anything else I can do for you?" Pai leaned against the wall and closed his eyes, his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah, get me some coffee and the information about the swim team. And don't screw it up this time." Kanzaki smiled.

"Of course. Anything for you, Kurogawa-san."

Pai opened one eye to look at him. "You know, Kanzaki, you might just be more in love with me than my family."

* * *

Pai was now leaning against the wall by the pool watching the girls splash around. He took a sip of coffee, not particularly amused by all the feminine-ness of the team. Soon, the captain came up to him, smiling. "Hello there, Kurogawa-senpai. How may I help you?" She asked as he looked at her blankly.

"Where were you between the times of 9:00 pm and 7:00 am on August 7th and 8th?"

The captain stared at him. There was a minute of silence before Pai sighed.

"I'm kidding." He said as the captain looked relieved. "I was wondering if Retasu was a member of the swim team." He said as she blinked.

"Oh, goodness no! She always sat out during PE when we were swimming. I can't ever recall seeing her in the water." She said as Pai looked at her blankly.

"Why is that?" He asked, although the answer was obvious.

"I don't think she could swim. That would certainly explain why she…" The captain trailed off.

"Drowned?"

"Yes."

Pai stood up straight again and handed her the rest of his coffee. "Thanks for your assistance." She stared at him for a minute, and then smiled.

"You know, more people would like you if you were more expressive." She said as Pai blinked slightly. "You loved her, right?" Pai blushed before turning away from her.

"It doesn't matter." She giggled slightly before taking a sip of the coffee and returning to the side of the pool.

Kisshu was right. Pai had become soft. More easy to read too, apparently. And all of this was because of her. Pai smiled to himself as he walked away from the pool. In that instant, he decided. She'd wake up. And when she did, he would never let her out of his sight.


	9. Why don't you love me anymore?

"My name is Fujiwara Zakuro. Please go out with me."

Pai instantly hated her. He raised an eyebrow as he glanced at this beauty out of the corner of his eye. "Sorry. I don't go out with anti-social people with purple hair. It makes me feel like I'm on a date with myself." He said as he returned to watering the plants.

"I see." Zakuro muttered as she looked down at her feet and furrowed her brow. "I'll return some other time. Please think it over."

Pai smirked at her. "Again, I'm sorry. I don't 'think it over' when it come to dating people." Zakuro folded her arms as she looked him in the eye.

"Not even when it comes to Midorikawa Retasu?" She asked as Pai's smirk turned into a glare.

"That was uncalled for." He growled as Zakuro turned her back to him and began to walk away.

"I'll see you tomorrow then." Pai turned off the water, causing it to squeak. His gaze followed her figure, watching her long hair swish back and forth behind her back.

He had to admit that she was gorgeous. She was by far, one of the most attractive people he had ever seen. Not as gorgeous as Retasu, however. Zakuro didn't have that air of innocence about her. Pai doubted that she was a virgin. He probably wanted to take his girlfriend's virginity all for himself, the pervert. Not that it wasn't true, because it definitely was. That's one of the reasons why he liked Retasu. She was the kind of girl that would probably get all hot just thinking about him, because Pai was downright sexy. Just ask any girl at Okumura Daifuzoku Junior and/or Senior high.

Speaking of Retasu, he needed to go see her today. He had been bringing her a shitload of flowers every day. He had decided that the hospital room looked too depressing, so that's why he was making it look like a funeral. He highly doubted that Retasu would approve, but you don't usually give a shit when you're in a coma. Pai picked a variety of flowers from the garden as his love-hate fan club watched him, wondering if he had a flower fetish or something. Or a girlfriend with a flower fetish.

On his way to the hospital, he ran into Ichigo. "Ah, Kurogawa-san, how nice to see you!" She said cheerfully as Pai attempted to hide the flowers behind his back. Ichigo blinked slightly as she tried to see what Pai was hiding. "What've you got there?" She asked as Pai glared at her.

"None of your fucking business." He growled as Ichigo drew back slightly.

"Geez, I was only curious. No need to shout at me." She said as she made an innocent looking face.

"I wasn't shouting."

"You might as well have been."

"You should seriously take some lessons on speaking the Japanese language."

"Yeah, whatever."

"Don't 'yeah, whatever' me young lady."

"You sound like my mom."

"I _am_ your mom."

"You seriously need to lay off the coffee."

At this point, Pai figured that he'd never get to the hospital before the flowers wilted, so he did the first thing that came to mind.

"Here, for you."

He held out the flowers to Ichigo as she stared at him. "Are you high?" She asked warily as Pai rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"No, now shut up and be grateful." He said as Ichigo blushed and took the flowers from him.

"Thank you, Kurogawa-san." She looked up and smiled brightly at him. Pai paused before speaking again.

"Want to go grab some cake?" He asked as Ichigo giggled.

"Always."

* * *

"A persistent girl?"

"Yeah." Pai replied as he ate the last bite of his chocolate cake. "She keeps asking me out." Ichigo let out a laugh. "It's not funny." He growled as he blushed slightly.

"Yes, it is." She said as she set down her fork. "Who is she, anyway?" She asked as she rested her chin in her hand.

"Fujiwara Zakuro, that teen model chick or whatever." He said as Ichigo stared at him.

"Really, Zakuro-san?" She sounded amazed as Pai gave her a strange look.

"You know her?" He asked as she nodded.

"Yeah, we both work at Café Mew Mew." Ichigo paused. "Although I'm the one who does most of the work…" She trailed off as Pai took a sip of his coffee. "I'm really surprised to hear that she asked you out though." She said as Pai glanced at her.

"Why, because we look like we could practically be twins?" Ichigo shook her head. "No. It's because she's already got a girlfriend."

Pai actually did choke on his coffee this time. Ichigo watched him worriedly as he sat there coughing, suddenly feeling guilty for his pain. "Are you okay?" She asked as Pai stared at her.

"She's got a _girlfriend_?" He asked as Ichigo tilted her head slightly.

"Yes. Is there a problem with that?" Pai furrowed his brow.

"Well, no… but she just seems so… _straight_…"

Ichigo raised an eyebrow at him.

"Howzzat work?"

"It's 'how does that', Momomiya-san."

She glared at him.

"Grammar Nazi."

Pai took a sip of his coffee, due to his recovery. "Anyway, I'm still trying to figure out how to deal with her." He looked up at Ichigo. "Any suggestions?" Ichigo smiled brightly at him.

"Nope!" Pai paused.

"You didn't even think about it, did you?"

"Not at all."

* * *

"Please go out with me."

"No."

"Why not?"

Pai turned around to glare at her. "Don't you have a date with your little girlfriend or something?" Zakuro glared back at him.

"Minto has nothing to do with this." Pai smiled victoriously.

"Ahh… so you do have a girlfriend." Zakuro looked away.

"We're not going out anymore." She turned back to him, her eyes blazing with fury. Pai smirked and leaned against a tree.

"Who knew? Little Miss Fujiwara is a lesbian." Zakuro folded her arms.

"I'm not." Pai raised an eyebrow.

"You're not?"

"That's right. I'm not."

"You don't love me; do you, Fujiwara-san?"

"I will do whatever is necessary."

Pai narrowed his eyes. "Necessary for what?" Zakuro glanced towards one of the bushes.

"None of your business." He put his hands on his hips and walked over to her.

"I can't help you with something if I don't know what it is." Zakuro glared at him again before whipping around and walking off.

"I'll return tomorrow." Pai groaned.

"Please don't." But, Zakuro was too far away to hear him.

She had been walking for a while now, glancing back every now and then. Eventually, she stopped and turned around.

"Please, stop following me."

They were already gone.

* * *

"How is she doing?" Pai asked as he walked into the room where Retasu was. Jun turned around and smiled at him.

"The same as she has been for the past two months." He stuck his hands in his pockets as Pai put a vase of flowers on the table.

"How are you?" Jun asked as Pai carefully arranged the flowers.

"Girl troubles." Jun raised an eyebrow.

"Got a girlfriend?" Pai shook his head

"Nope. I've got a girl who's gotten into the habit of asking me out every day." Jun looked startled.

"She loves you that much?" He asked as Pai switched vases for some of the flowers.

"Quite the opposite, actually. She hates me. I think that she's using me to get back at her ex." Jun chuckled slightly.

"So, she hates him too?" Pai turned to face his uncle.

"_Her_, Jun-san. She's a lesbian." Jun looked puzzled.

"That's an odd dilemma you've gotten yourself into there." Pai laughed.

"You're telling me?"

Jun blinked. "Did you just laugh?"

"Hm?"

Pai turned around to face him. Jun stared at him.

"You just laughed."

Pai raised an eyebrow.

"You're going senile, old man."

Jun put his hands on his hips.

"Whatever."

Pai smiled slightly.

Maybe life wasn't so bad.

* * *

"Have you heard the story?"

"The one about the pool?"

"Yeah."

"I heard. There was splashing in the pool although it's off-season, right?"

Pai rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. Don't tell me that you believe that crap." The two girls whipped around to look at him, startled.

"You don't, Kurogawa-san?" One of them asked. Pai put his hands on his hips.

"Do I look like I do?" They paused.

"No, not particularly." He blinked.

"Good. If I were you, I'd stop spreading rumors. It's most definitely nothing." With that, he walked off to leave the girls to their gossiping.

As he walked past the pool that evening, however, he couldn't keep a certain thought out of his head.

_I wonder if Retasu's here._


	10. We're both the ghost, my dear

He didn't know what compelled him to do what he did that evening. It was fortunate that no one had been there that night, because they surely would have believed that he was crazy.

Seeing the pool, he couldn't help but walk over to it, gazing into depth of the water. Before he knew it, he had shed his bag, coat, shoes and shirt, leaving only his pants on his body. It was cold out. He didn't understand why he had decided to do this, but now he was walking into the icy water, not reacting to the cold on his skin.

Soon, he was completely submerged, every part of him wet. He began to swim through the water, slowly becoming accustomed to its chill. He did a few laps. He didn't count them. After a few minutes of this, he spread out his arms and legs, floating on the surface. He closed his eyes.

Then, he remembered it. That dream he had two weeks before Retasu had fallen into a coma. He wondered what it felt like, having all of your air exit your body. It must've felt terrible. If only he had known then. If only he had known that Retasu would drown in this pool. If only he had thought that he wasn't having bizarre nightmares, and that it was actually reality.

He realized it then. He missed Retasu.

When he returned home, Ao Fukai looked at him like he was crazy. Kisshu simply shook his head while Taruto stood giggling like a maniac behind them. Pai found some comfort in knowing that his family agreed with him that he was nuts.

"Yup, you need some sleep. It's official."

* * *

"There was splashing again in the pool."

"It's scary, ne?"

Pai sighed as he leaned back in his chair.

"I thought I told you to stop spreading rumors."

The girls glared at him. "We can do whatever we want, Kurogawa-san."

Pai crossed his arms.

"Whatever. Do what you want. Just keep in mind that it's a waste of everyone's time."

With that, he returned to his desk and gazed out the window. He liked where is desk was. It was nice. He had a nice view of the pool.

God. This was becoming an obsession.

Pai paused before he went and walked over to the girls again.

"Hey… um… sorry… but could you tell me what you know about the off-season splashing? I'd like to investigate it."

They smirked at him as he blushed slightly.

"Not a problem."

* * *

Once again, Pai had stripped off his garments and submerged himself in the freezing water. It was quite shocking that he didn't ever catch a cold from engaging in such behavior. Perhaps he was accustomed to the cold from his personality. It would certainly make sense. And, once again, he was thinking about Retasu.

What was her family like? What about her friends? Did she have any childhood sweethearts? Pai wished that he had known her longer. He glanced up at the moon. It was nice that the clouds were sparse this evening. He smiled slightly as he leaned back, floating on the surface of the water. He would have a chance to get to know her better. It could be tomorrow, next week, next month, next year… Maybe even in the next min-

"The stars are beautiful aren't they?"

Pai whipped around as fast as he could to face the girl who had her feet splashing in the water. He blinked. Still there. He blinked again. She hadn't disappeared yet. "I'm hallucinating, aren't I?" He asked as she tilted her head to the right slightly.

"Why would you say that?" Pai blinked again. A twin sister? Unlikely.

"Who the hell are you?" She looked insulted.

"You know who I am, Pai-san." She responded as Pai stared at her more intensely now.

"I know who you are, but do you know who you are?" He asked as she let out a giggle.

"You don't make any sense, Pai-san." Pai blinked again. Why wouldn't this fucking girl go away?

"You're supposed to be dead." He said as she rested her chin in her hand.

"In a coma, you mean."

Pai narrowed his eyes. "You might as well be dead."

He suddenly looked alarmed. "You're not a ghost, are you?" She let out a laugh again.

"Of course not." Okay, now Pai was thoroughly confused.

"Who are you?"

She smiled at him.

"I'm Midorikawa Retasu. Who did you think I was?"

Pai blinked again.

"Have I gone crazy?" He asked as Retasu smiled and slipped into the water.

"Perhaps, perhaps not." She said as she waded over to him.

"Then why are you here?" He asked as she placed her hands on his shoulders and looked into his eyes.

"Because you wanted me to be."

Pai shut his eyes and felt her icy lips meet his.

_Man…_ He thought. _I have one seriously fucked up life._


	11. There's something strange about her

"Are you alright, Kurogawa-senpai?" Kayuki asked as Pai stared vacantly out the window. She stood there for a minute, waiting for a response before grabbing Pai's ear and dragging him toward her lips.

"I said, are you alright, Kurogawa-senpai?" She said loudly as Pai pulled himself away from her. He turned and glared at her.

"If I wasn't in a good enough mood today, I'd kick your ass." She glared back at him.

"I see… not scared to hit a girl, huh?" She sneered as Pai smiled slightly, creeping out some of the other students.

"I was just kidding, Kayuki-san. You know that." Kayuki stared at him, her eyes huge.

"Is the world ending today?" She asked as Pai put his hands on his hips, still smiling in a very un-Pai-like way.

"I hope not today. Tomorrow maybe..." With that, he grabbed his bag and dashed out of the classroom.

All of his classmates stared after him, blinking. "Personality transplant?"

* * *

"Ah! Kurogawa-senpai!" Retasu smiled brightly as she ran up to him and wrapped her arms around him. Pai smiled as well as he wrapped his arms around her in return. He pushed away from her still holding onto her arms and stroked her cheek with his left hand.

"It's nice to see you looking not pale." He said as Retasu giggled.

"I've not been like that for a week now, Kurogawa-senpai." She said as she interlocked her arm with his.

On the first date since Retasu's resurrection, she had informed Pai that no one would recognize her from the newspapers, because all the photos weren't very clear. Besides, she'd never had the same smile that she did now. He was still incredibly confused by the whole ordeal, but he was glad to have Retasu back. "How has your day been?" He asked.

"Not all that interesting, really. I spent most of it at the library." She responded as they began to walk away from the station. Pai sighed and turned to her.

"When are you going to go home?" At this question, Retasu paused, not answering. Pai blushed as he looked ahead of them again. "If you need somewhere to stay, you can always stay at my house." He paused. "…If you don't mind annoying little kids, that is."

She giggled into her hand as Pai smiled at her.

"Thank you, Kurogawa-senpai, but I'll be fine." He looked slightly disappointed. "Oh… okay…" He glanced back in front of them again. Retasu had been right. No one seemed to notice her. He wanted to ask her why she was not connecting back with her old family and friends, but he did not want to press the issue and ruin the mood.

"Are you okay?" She asked as Pai snapped back into reality.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She smiled as she tightened her grip on his arm. "I'm glad to hear it." He smiled back at her.

_Retasu… you should go back home soon…_

That is what he wanted to say, but somehow, he could not.

* * *

When Pai returned home, he was bombarded with work. This work, in fact, was chopping the tops and ends off green beans. Ao Fukai had started a garden a few years back, and he seemed to have a particular attachment to green beans. Pai stared at the huge pile in the kitchen, wondering just how he would conquer this monstrous demon. Beanzilla, he decided to call it.

"Alright, so, Kisshu since you have already picked off the beans off the vines -"

"Bushes, you mean."

Ao Fukai rolled his eyes at his oldest son's know-it-all attitude.

"Yes, _bushes_. You will help Pai chop off the unnecessary parts-"

"The ends and tips."

Ao Fukai ignored him this time. "And Taruto, you will blanch and shock them." Pai muttered something about Ao Fukai being an irresponsible father as he walked over to Beanzilla, followed by Kisshu. They immediately set to work, chopping away at the green beans in silence. Taruto took large handfuls of the beans and dropped them into the boiling water, then took them out and dunked them into ice water. Chop, chop, chop, splash, splash, splash. Pai was incredibly bored by the whole process, and thinking about his girlfriend didn't exactly help his massive headache.

"Hey, Pai?" Kisshu asked, breaking the silence.

"What?" Pai said in a harsher tone then he had intended. Oh well, it was too late now.

"How long have you and Ichigo been going out?" Pai stopped in mid-chop to stare at his brother as if he were nuts.

"Super Ditz and I? You think we're _dating_?" He said with disgust as Kisshu stopped as well to stare back at Pai.

"You guys certainly act like it."

Pai put down his knife and put his hands on his hips. Taruto had also stopped at this point, fascinated by the argument between his two older siblings. "Are you nuts?" Pai growled as Kisshu drew back slightly.

"How far have you gone with her?" Pai grabbed the front of Kisshu's shirt at this point and glared at him.

"I have no feelings whatsoever for that ditzy, annoying little girl." He hissed as Kisshu glared back at him.

"I cannot forgive you for insulting Ichigo."

If the phone hadn't rung, the two of them would have ripped each other to shreds. Pai dropped Kisshu, still glaring at him as the younger of the two slinked off to answer the phone. It was one of Kisshu's friends. Pai continued to irritably chop away the green beans until he had finished his half. With that, he stormed through the house, forcibly tugging on his shoes and slamming the door behind him as he left.

His family had noticed that he had always been grouchy, but all the confusion in his life was making it even worse. Before he knew it, sir grumpy found himself on the train, his bag slung across his shoulder, heading toward the hospital. He felt really stupid doing this since Retasu wasn't there, and she was alive and well, but he felt drawn to it somehow. As he got off the train, some jackass made fun of his hair. Pai resisted the urge to beat the shit out of him. _Well, the ladies like it, so shut the fuck up._ He was not in the mood to deal with some loser's silly antics right now, so he just walked past.

The jackass blocked the exit, smirking at him. Pai narrowed his eyes. "Excuse me sir, but you're blocking the exit." He said this while attempting to keep the annoyance out of his voice.

"Sorry, but you're going to have to pay a fee, mop-head." The guy laughed as a couple of his buddies chuckled in the background. Pai smirked and put his hands on his hips.

"Mop-head? Is that _seriously _the best insult that you could come up with?" The jackass looked taken aback.

"Look at this guy; he thinks he can stand up to us." He said he grinned. Pai grinned back.

"What are you gonna do? Call security on us?" The jackass said in a mocking voice as whispers broke out in the crowd that was slowly gathering. Pai folded his arms.

"Nope. That would take too much effort." The jackass grinned at his response.

"So, you'll pay up then?" Pai stretched his arms out. "No fucking way." With that, he punched the man and sent him flying into a pillar, causing him to let out a cry of pain.

The other people stared at Pai as he exited the train station and began walking to the hospital. He suspected that the man whose back was now possibly unbalanced would be headed there soon as well. Before long, he found himself in front of said building for people with probably serious injuries. Or a baby. Of course, to Pai, a baby _was_ an injury, but whatever. He stood staring up at the hospital of much cleanliness for a while before he got bored and walked away.

He decided to walk back home since he wanted to delay contact with his gay family for as long as possible. It was a hopeless feat, and he suspected that he would give up part way through and hop onto the train once again, heading toward his destination. Nevertheless, before he engaged in this activity, he would walk along the back streets, probably bump into some punks and beat the shit out of them.

"You bitch!"

Oh my. Speaking of punks… Pai stopped to listen to the activity in the alley that he had just passed, slightly curious. "Hey- ouch! What the fuck? I should kill you, woman!" Some woman beating up some thugs? Bo-ring. He started walking again until he heard it. "I'm gonna get you, Momomiya!" Momomiya… Momomiya… that sounded vaguely familiar…

"Heh… let's see you try it." Pai stared behind him. Super Ditz? He turned around and started walking back to glance into the alleyway.

My god. This girl never ceased to amaze him. What was that? A pro-wrestling move? What a disturbingly happy smile. "Are you going to give me the money that you owe me now?" Ichigo asked as the man that she had in a chokehold struggled to break free. Pai tilted his head to the side and furrowed his brow. "Momomiya-san?" Ichigo whipped around – still holding onto the man – and stared at Pai. "Kurogawa-senpai?" She asked in equal surprise. She dropped the man and ran up to Pai, smiling brightly.

"Hey, man, I haven't seen you in so long! What's up?" She asked as she held her arms open. Pai stared at her chest. Ichigo frowned.

"What are you looking at?"

"Momomiya-san, are you aware that you have blood on your shirt?"

"…oh dear."

He decided that Kisshu did not need to know about his precious Ichigo's little habit.

"So… where do you want me to escort you?"

"You know, Kurogawa-senpai, you don't have to do this."

"Sorry. I can't trust you to go by yourself."

"Gee, thanks."

Ichigo rubbed the band-aid on her cheek as she looked around, pondering while Pai put his mini-first aid kit back in his bag. "I'll go back to Café Mew Mew, I guess." She said as she put her hands on her hips. He cringed at the thought of going to that nest of pink obsessed, rabid little girls, but he escorted Superbly Violent Ditz there nonetheless. Ichigo seemed incapable of shutting up.

Mostly she talked about the other employees at the café. Was everyone in this whole town named after food? It was certainly possible. When she brought up the subject of Retasu, she trailed off and stayed silent the rest of the trip. Pai wanted to tell her that she was alive and well, but Retasu said not to tell until she said so. Girls are so fussy.

Upon arriving at the café, they saw a distressed looking girl exiting the building. Ichigo stopped when she saw her. "Minto-san?" The girl literally jumped a foot in the air.

"Ichigo-san…" She stared at Superbly Violent Ditz, her eyes as wide as saucers. Ichigo's eyes lit up and she grinned.

"Wow! It's been so long! How are you?" She asked, beginning to walk forward. Minto glanced around nervously as Pai eyed her.

So, Fujiwara Zakuro had been going out with this girl. Pai raised an eyebrow as he examined her. Not that bad looking. It made perfect sense for her to end up liking this Minto girl. From what he had heard about her from Ichigo, however, was completely different from now she appeared now. According to Superbly Violent Ditz, Aizawa Minto was a stuck up, sarcastic, rude chick who did ballet. This 'Aizawa Minto' that he was currently observing, was innocent looking, and incredibly nervous.

"Oh, um… I… uh…" Minto continued to glance around, as if searching for an escape route. Pai noticed the tight hold that she was keeping on her bag. Stealing money from the cash register…? He glanced at her face again. Possible, but unlikely. "I-I'd better go…" Ichigo frowned.

"Oh… okay." She smiled weakly. "Well, take care of yourself, Minto-san." Minto nodded, looking relieved as she walked away, keeping a fast pace.

"I wonder what's got her knickers in a twist." Pai said aloud as Ichigo turned to him.

"I'm not sure, but…" He glanced at her, curious to hear the rest of her sentence. "I… I think she's been avoiding me…" He furrowed his brow. _No shit, Sherlock. How long did it take you to figure that one out?_

"I see" were the words that he said aloud. How Kisshu could possibly think that Pai was in love with this dense moron, he did not know.

There was a pause before Pai began to walk off. Ichigo turned to watch him. "Good night, Kurogawa-senpai!" She called out to him as his figure gradually grew smaller. In that one moment, he did not know what came over him. He stopped. He turned. He waved goodbye. Blushing halfway through, Pai stopped, his eyes widening. He quickly turned away again and briskly began walking to the station.

Ichigo smiled after him. Lovely, lovely Kurogawa-senpai…


	12. A day off

February 13th. That cursed day in which they celebrated the birth of a certain individual.

That individual was, in fact, Kurogawa Pai.

When he came downstairs that morning, he was greeted with a feast. Despite the fact that it was in honor of Ao Fukai's oldest son being born, the ones who benefited from this luxurious meal the most were the ones who actually shared blood with the cross-dressing bartender. "Happy birthday, Pai!" Kisshu and Taruto exclaimed, their faces full of glee, and then began to help themselves various foods, and, oddly enough, éclairs.

Pai knew that they were doing this to make him feel welcome, but in reality, the bigger of a deal they made, the more he felt isolated. He would always be the one who was out of place, the black sheep. And that's exactly what he was. There was nothing bright about him. Once, he went to a fortune teller… or was it an aura reader…? He didn't pay attention to the details of things that wouldn't benefit him later in life.

Anyway, this lady who he had believed to be crazy, had told him in a voice thick with questionable amounts of concern, that if he wasn't careful, he would fall into the dark abyss. Pai had rolled his eyes at this comment. _Dark abyss my ass. You think I'm gonna walk off a cliff or something?_ His adoptive father, on the other hand, was all in a tizzy over all this 'dark abyss' shit. Pai had rolled his eyes at this too.

Yeah, so, he was born on February 13th - which was bound to land on a Friday every now and then -, some lady who paid her rent by talking about mystic wa-wa stuff had said that he had to stay on track in life, or he might as well just kill himself, he had two annoying brothers, and an even more annoying horde of fangirls that kissed the ground he walked on.

Oh yeah, and lets not forget about the bit that his girlfriend with an obvious identity crisis had just spent several months in the hospital by sorta-drowning. How fucked up is that? Clearly, the God of screwing up people's lives seemed to smile upon Pai. Lovely. Oh, almost forgot. The girlfriend who had drowned, and was still alive – not undead, I might add – had insisted that she come over today while everyone was at school or at work.

This also meant that Pai had to skip school. Well, it's not like he wouldn't be learning anything – hint, hint – and it saved him from being buried in an avalanche of gifts from wish-they-were-his-girlfriends. And, it also meant spending all day with Retasu, which was a bonus. So, not long after his family had departed, she showed up at his doorstep. He opened the door.

"Why hello there." He said as a small smile crawled onto his lips.

"Good morning, Kurogawa-senpai." She replied as Pai stepped aside and she entered, the silver bag she had in her hand brushing against his leg. He shut the door behind her, along with the cold. She shivered slightly as she looked around the house while slipping off her coat. He took it from her and hung it on the coat rack, her gloves, hat and scarf soon following it.

He smirked as he examined her dress. It was a black dress with a high, mandarin collar. It ended in lace, just as the collar did, and it did so just below the knees. A large green ribbon was around her waist with a big bow in the back, and black stockings accompanied the dress along with a pair of green boots, which Retasu was currently pulling off.

Pai's appearance, in contrast to hers was rather dull. Then again, it was hard to match the looks of someone that gorgeous. He was suddenly curious as to what she was wearing under her dress. Probably something cutesy, he expected. Or plain white. She wouldn't wear something as seductive, such as something black and lacy. At this point, he realized that Retasu had been addressing him.

"Hmm?" He looked up, his arms crossed. He quickly backed away, realizing how close her face was.

"Ummm… was me coming here… too intrusive…?" She glanced about, her cheeks red. God dammit. She was just too fucking cute. Shutting his eyes, he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a tight hug.

"Don't worry about it. It's the best gift you could have given me." He replied softly as she smiled and placed her hands on his back.

"Um… Kurogawa-senpai…?" His eyes snapped open again as he felt her weight shift. She was pressing her legs together. He blushed. Oh no. Oh _god_ no. He knew what that meant. He had, in fact, been cornered by several girls in the student council room once everyone else had left. 'Kurogawa-sama…' They're voices were all meshed together in his mind. 'I… I want you… please, make love to me…'

That was, in fact, the reason why he had quit the student council, and why he only engaged in watering the garden at school. The likelihood of horny teenage girls confronting him in front of the school was much less than if he hung out in the student council room. Pai gulped, back in the present. "Yes, Midorikawa-san?" He choked as she dug her fingers into his back.

She pulled away from him slightly to look into his eyes. He stared back, uncertain as to what he was feeling. "Ummm..." She glanced at the corner of the room. Pai's eyes followed her gaze, landing upon the present.

"Oh… uh… yes…" He cleared his throat, still blushing, and walked over to pick up the silver bag. "Er… thanks…" He said as he walked back over to Retasu. There was a moment of silence before he spoke.

He slowly pointed to the living room. "Shall we go in there?" He asked as she quickly nodded.

"Yes, let's." And so they did, the awkwardness lifting ever so slightly. Now sitting across from each other, Pai slowly spread the tissue paper the filled the interior of the bag. What he had expected to see inside was perhaps a CD, maybe a love journal. Somewhere in his subconscious, he had also been expecting to see – god forbid – green beans. What he saw, however, was something that not even the strangest of people could have chosen for him.

Penguin slippers.

That's right, Penguin slippers.

Usually, when people thought of Pai, the animal slippers that would come to mind would be shark slippers, and you have to admit that they'd suit him well. No, no shark slippers were to be found, just Penguin slippers in all their awesomely strange glory. He fucking loved them. A grin crept onto his face after recovering from his brief moment of shock. "Midorikawa-san…?"

The shy girl who had been staring at her feet perked up at the sound of her name. "Yes?" He looked up at her, his eyes sparkling.

"I take it back." She frowned at his words. "This is by far the more superbly awesome gift you could have ever gotten anyone." She smiled again and flung herself onto him, her eyes buried in his shoulder. Pai slipped his hands onto her back, fascinated by the texture of the dress.

It only took a minute for them both to realize the position they had just assumed. "Oh, I-I'm sorry!" She stuttered as her face turned red in embarrassment. She tried to push away, but he held her back.

"Please… er… stay…" He said, his eyes darting about. The expression and color on his face reflected that of the girl who crouched above him.

"Kurogawa-senpai…"

Before she knew it, she had leaned forward and interlocked her lips with his, a feeling not unlike chills down the spine shooting through her body. He had one hand on her hip, and the other rested on the back of her neck, the slippers forgotten on the couch next to them. She tangled her fingers into his hair, urging him to deepen his kiss. Lips melding together, he slowly ran his fingers down to her upper thighs. Retasu pulled back, staring at him. "Y-you're hands…" His eyes burned with desire as he stared at her.

"Yeah… I know…" She paused and took his hand, leading him up to the top of the stockings lay. He blushed again as he took his other hand and found the same place on the opposite leg. He slowly slipped them down further on her legs, the tights tickling her skin.

Just as he was about to discover what lovely undergarments she wore under such elegant clothes, he heard someone at the front door. Grabbing Retasu, he picked her up and shoved her into the closet, attempting to find somewhere else for him to hide himself. The door clicked open, and Pai knew that there was no escape. He would have to quickly come up with an excuse that wasn't the fact that he had skipped school to engage in sexual activity with his girlfriend who the world presumed dead.

He whispered to Retasu through the door and then steadily walked to the main area where Ao Fukai stood, both of his arms full of groceries. "Welcome home, father." Pai said nervously as his father stared at him.

"Pai? What are you doing here? Why aren't you at school?" Okay, Pai, time to put your wits to the test.

"Well, today's my birthday and all…" He began slowly as the other man - in a miniskirt with a trench coat, no less – eyed him skeptically.

"And?" He asked suspiciously as Pai cleared his throat.

"Well, think about it. If it was the birthday of the person that you loved today, wouldn't you want to do something special for them?" Ao Fukai raised an eyebrow.

"It's your birthday, not mine." He said blankly as Pai slapped himself in the forehead.

"I know, dad. I'm talking about half of the female student population at my school – probably my teachers too." He said as he waved his arms about.

Ao Fukai smiled. "And that's different from all of your other birthdays?" He inquired as Pai sighed.

"Yes, because I also wanted to think something over today." He said, suddenly wishing that he could pull them back in.

"And what might that be?" Ao Fukai asked as he set down the groceries and folded his arms. Pai looked at his feet.

"I… I want to go to law school."

Ao Fukai actually started tearing up. There was a moment of silence as they stared at one another, the older of the two smiling brightly at the younger. "Oh, Edward." He whispered as he pulled his son into a hug. Pai rolled his eyes and patted his back, considering if he should just skip the law school entrance exams when they came around. "C'mon, dad. I'll make you some tea." He said as he picked up the groceries and led his father into the kitchen.

While putting away the rather expensive food that Ao Fukai had gotten, he heard the front door open and close. He took this chance to see if Retasu had truly gone by taking the trash out. He found that she and her wonderful clothes had gone, as though they weren't even there. He had wondered why Ao Fukai hadn't noticed the boots in the entryway, but he realized that his father had most likely mistaken them for his own.

"Oh, and dad, one more thing."

"Yes, sweetie?"

"My name isn't Edward. It's Pai."

"…sorry…"


	13. Why, Oneesama?

Perfect.

Kisshu smiled in satisfaction as he stood back and admired his work. He had kindly asked the music club to allow him to use the room, which was now highly decorated. Earlier that morning, he had snuck a little note into her locker. 'Come to music room 2 after school' was what he had scribbled onto that small piece of paper, complete with messy handwriting.

He examined the cake, making sure that it was as he had ordered. Also perfect. Now, he would wait. He sat at the piano bench, examining the sheet music that looked almost as cluttered as the kanji on his note. He paused; perhaps it was best to begin now. His fingers glided over the keys, gently letting out a soft, melancholy tune. He played for several minutes, not noticing the figure that had slipped into the room and was now standing by his shoulder. She leaned over slightly, reading the lyrics.

After she took a moment to learn the tune, she allowed her vocals to join the piano's sweet clinking. Kisshu jumped at the sudden sound of her voice. Once he recognized the figure, he smiled and finished playing the piece. Once the final note echoed off the walls of the room, he turned to her and smiled. "I was starting to think that you weren't coming." He said with a grin as he flipped through the music filled pages, searching for another tune that he wished to play.

Ichigo blushed and smiled back at him. "You did this all for me?" She asked shyly as she twiddled her thumbs.

"All for you, Ichigo." He said as he settled on a tune and placed his hands on the piano. "You start on the 'g' after the whole note." He said as he gently began playing. She smiled and watched the notes, waiting for her queue.

* * *

_Tap-tap-tap-tap…_

Pai tapped his pencil against his book, increasingly frustrated by his current inability to study. His mind kept wandering to the chaos in his life, despite his attempts to calm his mind with the history of Sweden. This proved to be unsuccessful; therefore, he slammed his book shut, causing the girl next to him to flinch. "May I sit here?" She had asked, despite the fact that the library was almost empty. Pai didn't really care what she did, so he had moved his bags, leaving the chair empty.

She now seemed rather disappointed that he was leaving. "Um… excuse me…?" She asked as Pai stood up, glancing at her.

"What?" She blushed slightly. She pointed to one of the books that Pai had picked up.

"That's my book." Pai paused and gently set down the book, then walked off. His cheeks were slightly red from his mistake; therefore he slinked over to the water fountain and took a sip of water. He checked out his books and exited the library, needing to go somewhere else.

When he exited the library, he realized that he had no idea where he was going to go. A café? No. He wasn't feeling up to it. Bookstore? Nah, it would be the same as the library, except you would have to buy the books. Movie Theater? Absolutely not. It would be strange to go to the movies by himself. He pondered this last activity again.

He could invite Retasu to go with him.

This idea was quickly trashed. One reason being that he had no way of contacting her. The other being that he really didn't want to see her right now anyway. Something about her lately was… strange. More and more, he was convinced that she was actually dead, and that he had gone crazy. Maybe he had, maybe he hadn't.

He stared vacantly across the street, eyeing the quotidian individuals that lingered on the corner, going about their usual business. The one individual that caught his eye, however, was the one that attracted the glances of many others. It didn't take long for her to notice Pai. Within a few seconds, the light changed and she started dashing towards him. He swore and turned around, hurriedly walking into the crowd.

"Kurogawa-san!" He swore again and turned around, facing her.

"May I help you, Fujiwara-san?" He asked curtly as Zakuro smirked at him mockingly, pushing her hair behind her shoulder. She sounded suspiciously winded as she spoke to him.

"Not a… very friendly… person… are you?" Her speech was broken up with gasps. Pai blinked, curious as to why she in this condition.

"Are you alright?" He asked as he shifted the position of his messenger bag on his shoulder. She glanced behind her as if she were looking for someone. Pai repeated his question. Zakuro whipped around and stared at him.

"Uh… yeah, I'm fine." She responded, glancing over her shoulder again. He paused.

"Stalker?" He asked as she looked at him again. She frowned.

Pai sighed and nodded in the direction of a café. Zakuro shook her head. "Um… I actually have somewhere to be." He eyed her skeptically.

"Okay…" He turned his back to her, only to be whirled around to face her again. Her face was incredibly close to his. Her grip on his upper arms only tightened as she stared at him, wild-eyed.

"I'm being followed." She whispered urgently as Pai narrowed his eyes.

"Please… can you stop her from following me?" She begged as he rolled his eyes.

"And how exactly do you suggest that I do that?" He asked in exasperation as Zakuro glanced over her shoulder yet again. She turned back to face him.

"I don't know! Just think of something. That girl is nuts!" She hissed as she let go of him and stalked off. He watched as she went, a little irritated at the task that had been given to him by his should-be-twin.

Then, something blue caught his eye. He stared at the girl as she picked her way through the people crossing the street. He immediately noticed that she was anxiously glancing around, clearly searching for someone. It was Minto. Pai thrust himself forward, grabbing her wrist. She whipped around and stared at him. Oddly enough, her eyes immediately began watering. He stared at her, utterly confused. Her legs seemed to have given way, for she collapsed to the ground, her free hand covering her eyes. She began wailing, causing him to let go of her wrist and take a few steps back.

What a nervous wreck. Pai touched his face. Was he wearing such a frightening expression when he flung himself towards her? She peeked through her eyes to stare into the on looking crowd. He followed her gaze to see Zakuro, staring at her coldly. After a moment or so, she turned and left as Minto continued to sob. Pai frowned and turned back to her, kneeling as he did so.

"Sorry… are… are you alright?" He asked, feeling guilty. She sniffled and nodded. "Can you get up?" He asked as she nodded again. He offered her his hand which she hesitantly took, unsure if she should trust him or not. As she got to her feet, she sniffled again and wiped her sleeve across her eyes. The crowd began to disperse as the people frowned and shook their heads as they walked away. Pai bent down and picked up Minto's messenger bag, handing it to her.

They stood silently for a moment as he blushed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Umm… do you want some tea or something…?" He asked quietly. She nodded. He smiled slightly. "I know a good café down the street. Do you want to go there?" She nodded again. She was cute. Very odd, but cute. He gestured down the street where the café was and began walking, Minto following closely behind.


	14. Can you see me now?

"Are you and Zakuro-Oneesama dating?"

Pai glanced at her over his coffee mug. Those were the first words she had said since the waitress had taken their order fifteen minutes ago. He took a sip of his coffee before responding to Minto's question. "No." He said bluntly as he set his mug down. She blushed and stared at her chocolate raspberry cake, embarrassed by her mistake.

"Oh… I'm sorry… I thought…" She trailed off as Pai picked at his Tiramisu.

"No worries." He said as he set down his fork. Minto nervously glanced out the window, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"It's just…" She began, her eyes watering slightly. "I'm… well…" She trailed off and looked at her tea in shame. "I'm… obsessed with her." She whispered as Pai looked at her, a little frightened by the fact that he was empathizing with her.

She sniffled and brushed away her tears as she continued to stare intently at her tea. It was quiet for a little while as he took a sip of his coffee. "I know what you mean." He said calmly as Minto looked up in surprise.

"You… do…?" Her tone was confused, which Pai noticed. He smiled slightly.

"I do." He said as she smiled back weakly.

"Are you obsessed with her too?"

Pai chuckled and shook his head, setting back down his coffee mug. "No… not with Fujiwara Zakuro." He said as he rested his chin in his hand. Minto looked down at her cake again.

"With Midorikawa Retasu…?" She asked as his expression hardened at the sound of her name. He slowly picked up his fork again, suddenly very interested in his Tiramisu.

"Yeah." He said plainly as he jabbed the cake with the fork.

She eyed him warily as he shoved a piece of his Tiramisu into his mouth. She cautiously began to speak, not wanting to upset him. "Do you miss her?" She asked as he glanced up at her. He swallowed the piece of cake that he had just put into his mouth.

"Yeah." He lied as he took a sip of his coffee. Minto's cheeks reddened and she glanced away.

"She used to talk about you a lot." She murmured at Pai looked up at her in surprise.

"You're really comfortable talking about it, aren't you?" He asked as she looked up at him again. She shrugged and picked up her fork.

"I guess I just feel like she isn't gone permanently." She said as she took a bite of her cake. He looked at her curiously as he folded his arms.

"Well, the only people I've even heard about coming back to life are zombies and Jesus." He said as Minto nearly choked on her cake, due to a sudden giggle fit.

He smiled slightly at this. "What?" He asked as she smiled up at him.

"You're so pessimistic." She said as she covered her mouth in embarrassment, still grinning. Pai leaned back in his chair and ran his fingers through his hair, still smiling brightly at her.

"Am I now?" He asked as Minto blushed, tucking more stray hairs behind her ear.

"Wow… Retasu said you were cute, but… wow…" She said, turning redder as he also blushed, taking his hand out of his hair.

There was an uncomfortable silence as they sat, looking at the table in front of him. After a little while, he looked at her again. "Um… when I first met you…" She looked up, waiting for him to continue. "You looked… well… terrified at the sight of Momomiya-san." He said as her eyes darted away. She chuckled nervously and crossed her arms uncomfortably.

"I am." She said as Pai raised his eyebrows curiously.

"Are you going to tell me why?" He asked as Minto closed her eyes.

"I can't." She whispered as he blinked at her slowly.

"Why not?" He said softly as she shivered, tightly closing her eyes as if she were in pain.

"I just can't." She hissed as he sighed and looked away. "Does she know something that you don't want her to tell about?" He asked as she whipped around and stared at him, her eyes wide.

"No." She said, her voice wavering. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. Something was telling him that she was lying.

"Does it have something to do with Midorikawa-san?" He asked as her eyes widened further.

"Re… ta… su…" Pai suddenly realized that her eyes were not fixated on him, but rather on the door behind him. He slowly turned around to see her standing in the doorway there, his blue-eyed beauty.

He quickly turned back to Minto, who was still staring at Retasu. "You can see her?" He whispered. She then abruptly stood up, her eyes still locked onto Retasu.

"Retasu…?" She called to her as the other girl stared back at her with equal surprise.

"Minto-san?" Minto then ran across the café, into Retasu's arms, leaving a thoroughly confused Pai sitting at the table.


	15. The Voices in my Head

_Hands at his throat, tightening… he looked up at the one who was assaulting him, staring into her eyes. Her face was filled with rage as she continued to strangle him, watching him squirm below her. Her expression then softened for a moment as her grip loosened. She then leaned down and planted her lips on his forehead, brushing his hair aside with her hand. "I love you…"_

Pai slowly opened his eyes to see Ao Fukai lifting his lips from the forehead of the former. He grimaced at his father once he realized that he had kissed his forehead. "Dare I ask why you were committing such an insane-asylum-worthy act?" Pai asked as Ao Fukai frowned at him.

"Your sleeping face just looked so cute." He responded as his son looked even more disgusted.

Pai quickly sat up and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand as Ao Fukai rolled his eyes. "That strikes me as a very motherly thing." The younger said as the older chuckled.

"Well, since you don't have a mother, I guess that I'll have to make up for both parental units." He said as he stood up, his hand on his hips. Pai frowned at his father's skin-tight black leather pants, pink belly-shirt, stilettos and bright pink nail polish.

"Dad, mother plus father does not equal drag queen, no matter what kind of logic you use." Pai said as Ao Fukai looked down at his garments, frowning.

"Okay, smart ass. I'm leaving you at home today. Taruto's going to be hanging out with some friends, so it's going to be just you and Kisshu." The elder smiled as he finished. "Play nice." Pai rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, just go on and get out of here."

His father then blew him a kiss and exited the room. Pai simply smirked and shook his head.

* * *

As it turned out, Pai had the house to himself for most of the day. Not long after Ao Fukai had departed, the two people remaining in the house, -Pai and Kisshu- found themselves in an argument about the younger not pulling his own weight. The fight escalated to personal remarks and the flinging of small objects at one another, until Kisshu finally stormed out of the house, leaving Pai standing in the totally trashed living room.

After the door slammed shut, the elder brother swore and flung the rubber ball that he was holding at the ground. He then watched as the ball bounced up to the ceiling, back down to the floor, up to the ceiling again, and then into Pai's favorite vase, knocking it to the ground where it smashed into little pieces. He then swore again. He stormed into the hallway, grabbing the phone off the wall.

As he randomly punched in numbers, he pictured Retasu. He wanted to see her. Really bad. He put the phone to his ear and listened to the ringing, waiting for someone to pick up. After a while, a man answered and Pai immediately hung up. He looked up at his reflection in the mirror hanging on the wall. As he stood staring at himself, he heard the voices inside his head for the first time.

_It's all a lie._

He stared at his reflection in the mirror, realizing that his lips were twisting into a sneer.

_You've completely fooled yourself. She's dead, you know._

"No…" He whispered, pressing his fingers against his cheek. "What about Aizawa-san?"

_Does she really seem that stable to you? You've seen her various bizarre habits, including the stalking of an ex-girlfriend._

His eyes steadily grew wider, causing his face to look distorted.

_Do you know how she died?_

"She drowned."

_Why do you think that is?_

"She can't swim."

_Why would she go to the pool in the middle of the night, especially when it's off-season?_

He paused. He then spoke in a low whisper. "She was lured there…"

He then turned around to see her standing there, looking at him blankly. "Retasu…" He whispered as he began to walk over to her. He had completely forgotten that they had planned for her to come over today. A gentle smile spread across her face as he drew nearer.

"Good afternoon, Kurogawa-senpai." With one swift motion, he pulled her body tightly against his, thrusting his lips upon hers. The brown paper bag that she had been carrying fell to the ground with a loud crash.

He didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to think about if he was nuts. He didn't want to think about if she was really here right now. He didn't want to think about the juice that was steadily seeping out of the broken glass bottle and onto the floor. He didn't want to think about anything.

He just wanted to be with Retasu more than anything.


	16. I cherish those sweet moments

The setting sun reflecting on her bare back was simply stunning. Such a smooth, delicate surface… mesmerizing.

Pai bent down, planting his lips on her shoulder blade. Retasu let out a tired moan and turned over to look at him. As soon as she realized that her chest was fully exposed, she let out an embarrassed squeal and flipped back over. He smiled and ran the back of his hand along her smooth skin, chuckling ever so slightly. "Why so shy?" He asked in a voice as soft as silk.

"Because…" Retasu's voice was muffled by the pillow that she had buried her face in. Pai then swung his legs back onto the bed, pulling the covers over him as he did so. She peeked out from the pillow to look at him, feeling his hand creep up her side. "Umm… Kurogawa-senpai…?" She murmured.

"Yes?"

"What are you doing?"

Pai smirked and started tickling her under the armpit, causing her to squeal loudly. "K-K-K-K-u-ro-ga-gawa-s-senpai!" She managed to exclaim through insane laughter. "St-st-st-stop it!" Pai started laughing uncontrollably as well as she began tickling him behind his neck. They went at it for a few minutes, making such noise that it's quite a shock that Ao Fukai didn't get any calls from the neighbors.

After a while, they stopped, out of breath, their hands intertwined. Pai looked up at Retasu, his violet eyes still glimmering with laughter. "Truce?" He asked. She nodded in response and giggled. He then wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tightly against his bare chest. They lay in the almost silent room, the only sounds being the clock ticking in the background, and their gasps that were slowly subsiding.

He knew this moment would be one that he cherished forever. He could feel her warm body pressed against his. He could hear her soft breathing, smell her shampoo, taste her lips. "Retasu?" He felt her tense against him as he used her given name.

"Yes, Pai-san?" He felt a wave of pleasure flow through him at the sound of her sweet voice using his name.

"I think I love you." He blurted it out, immediately regretting it. _I __think__? I'm so fucking stupid!_ He pulled her away and stared into her eyes, his face scarlet. "I don't _think_ Retasu. I mean I really do, I mean you're-" His incoherent babble was silenced by Retasu placing her finger against his lips, a smile on her face.

"I know." She murmured as she leaned forward and kissed him. As she pulled away, he saw the trace of a tear in her eyes.

"I love you too."

He smiled as he hugged her again. He just wanted to stay in this moment forever. Then, he heard the phone ringing downstairs. He then heard a muffled "um… shouldn't you get that?" against his chest.

"If it's that important, they'll call again later." He grumbled into her hair. After a while the phone stopped ringing. Pai smiled as Retasu ran her hand along his back in a slow, rhythmic motion. She pulled back, looking into his eyes. She shut them again as she molded her mouth to his and he-

_Ring…_

-reached for her leg, placing it on top of his hip-

_Ring…_

-and he pulled his lips away to kiss her neck, then to run his tongue along her jaw line-

_Ring…_

-and then he slid his fingers down her collar bone, down onto her breast, where he began to circle her nipple-

_Ring…_

-she let out a moan and-

_Ring…_

"FUCK!" Pai pulled away from Retasu, threw off the covers, leapt out of bed, pulled on his boxers and stormed down the stairs. When he reached the phone, he angrily pulled the receiver off the hook and placed it against his ear. "Hello, Kurogawa residence." he said in a voice that was more unfriendly than necessary.

"Hello, is this Pai-kun? It's Jun."

A few minutes later, Pai walked back up the stairs, back into his room, and stopped in front of his bed. Retasu looked up at his grim expression, and her face went pale. "Retasu, we need to talk." He said. There was a pause, and then she slowly nodded. "I'll be asking the questions for now, and you'd better have answers." She nodded again.

"First, you can tell me who the hell you are."


	17. The only kisses we have are salty

**Chapter Sixteen: The only kisses we have are salty…**

_Disclaimer:_ The only thing that I own in this story is the writing. Pretty much all the rest belongs to Mia Ikumi and Reiko Yoshida.

_A/N 12/20/2009:_ I finally had inspiration to work more on this story after I realized that I would feel less foolish as I wrote about relationships and their ups and downs. I now understand better the fights, the romance, the silence, the love-making… I've also done a lot of thinking about the story itself, how it will continue, and how it will conclude.

Although the relationship between Pai and Retasu that you will see from here on out is troubled, I hope that you can find it at least somewhat realistic, ignoring the fantasy elements of course. My goal with this story is to go beyond what you see in fluff stories written by twelve-years-olds (which is about how old I was when I first thought of this story.) and show you something much deeper, and perhaps closer to the truth.

People aren't perfect, friendships aren't perfect, and relationships are far from it. My own relationship with my boyfriend isn't perfect, as wonderful as being with him is. (We're on our seventh month together. :) ) I want to try to show how not everything is easy, and how conflicting these feelings are.

I hope that this story is more powerful from now on, although possibly sadder as well. Although most of you will probably hate me by the end, perhaps that's another example of a troubled relationship. xD I'll try to update more often, and I hope that you all enjoy this story at least some of the time.

You're always in my heart, Zen.

P.S. Arizo, think before you write your review.

P.P.S. To get the feel of this story and to depress yourself even more, (jk) listen to Linkin Park- particularly from Minutes to Midnight. :) Also, listen to the song 'Meddle' by Little Boots. I love it! And I listened to it as I was writing this chapter. :D

* * *

"_First, you can tell me who the hell you are."_

"_I'm Midorikawa Retasu…"_

"_You liar."_

The train rattling on the tracks, a boy playing his music way too loud in his headphones, a couple giggling and whispering sweet nothings into each other's ears…

The only thing he could hear was the one thing he shouldn't; her soft, gentle breathing. She kindly respected his personal space by making sure that she didn't touch him, although the crowded train made that difficult. Although he was filled with rage, he couldn't draw his eyes away from her. She pointedly at the ground, so all he could see of her face was what was reflected on the inside of her large, circular glasses.

He felt furious, yet so compassionate at the same time. He wanted to reach out and hit… no… touch her… make her look at him… make her tell him the truth… make her tell him that he was her only love…

Pai slowly lifted his hand, reaching towards her. She flinched away. He drew back, looking away from her for the first time since they got on the train. He glanced back at her, and then away again. He then sighed, turning to face her fully. "Retasu…" He reached out to her again; once again she flinched. A middle-aged man standing near-by glanced at him strangely before looking out the window.

The machine-like female voice announced the stop for the hospital, and moments later the doors opened and Pai and Retasu exited the train. The walk to the hospital was silent as well, as was the walk through the lobby, the standing in the elevator, the walking down the corridors. Once they were at the entrance to the restricted section, the receptionist stood up quickly. Pai stopped and told her his name, and he was allowed to pass through. She didn't ask Retasu for clearance.

All was quiet again until they reached where Jun was waiting for them. He smiled brightly at his nephew, waving at him. "Good to see you Pai-kun. I was worried that you and Retasu had gotten into a fight or something." He chuckled as Pai smiled as best as he could. "That's crazy, Jun-san. You know she's in some weird state of death." He said as he felt Retasu flinch next to him. Jun laughed uncomfortably, and then scratched his sideburn. "Well, I suppose I'd better not keep you from going in to see her. I'm sure she's missed you." Pai nodded to his uncle and then stepped forward to open the door to Retasu's room.

The room was still quite warm, just as much as it had been so long ago. He turned to see her still lying there, still unconscious, still in her hospital gown… still silent. He turned to see the Retasu standing beside him, staring at her body that was in that hospital bed. The tears running down her cheeks sparkled in the fluorescent light. She then slowly looked up at him, her ocean blue eyes glossy. "Am I dead?" She whispered. Pai shook his head. "You're just sleeping."

"Pai-san?"

"Yes?"

"Do you hate me now?"

Pai paused, turning back to her body.

"No. I love you, more than anything."

"Then why are you so cold?"

He looked up at the ceiling, tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes.

"I'm just so confused, Retasu." He rubbed his eyes. "I'm going crazy." He laughed without humor. "Literally." He laughed again. "I mean, I'm talking to a hallucination that I've fallen in love with." She flung herself at him, slamming him against the wall. "No!" She cried. "I'm real!" As he watched the tears flood down her cheeks, he finally lost control of his tear ducts, and tears began to fall for him too.

He pulled her close to his chest, burying his face in her hair. "You are," he sobbed. "But you're lying over there." She shook her head into his chest, groaning. "No! I'm right here!" She pulled away far enough to look up at him. He looked down at her, his tears splashing onto her face. "No! You're not-" He was cut off by Retasu forcing her lips on his, kissing him. He closed his eyes and grabbed her face, returning her kiss.

She tangled her hands in his hair, kissing him so hard that her lips started to bleed. She pulled him down to the floor, wrestling with his shirt. Pai quickly pulled away, prying her hands away from him. "I don't want to do this, Retasu." He said as Retasu's lip trembled. "No, please… Pai-san!" He stood up, brushing away what remained of his tears with his sleeve. He quickly opened the door as she stumbled to her feet to chase after him. He stormed down the hall, Retasu on his trail.

"Wait! Pai-san! Please stop walking! I promise I won't do it again! Please, don't go!"

She followed him all the way outside where he finally whipped around and grabbed her shoulders, glaring down at her. "Retasu, I can't be with something that isn't there, and I certainly can't have sex with it!" He growled as Retasu started to sob. "Pai-san… I'm not an it… I'm your girlfriend…" She choked as he grimaced. "Not anymore, Retasu. I love you, but I can't be your boyfriend if you don't exist."

Her face turned solid like stone. He released his hands, allowing her to fall to her knees. "I do exist… Pai-san… I'm real… I'm really real…" She murmured as he turned and began to walk away. _I love you…_ he couldn't remember who it was that he loved- the girl living like the dead in the deepest corner of the hospital, or the non-existent one talking to herself in the middle of the street where she remained unseen. All the people on the street saw was the crazy boy that broke up with the girl who wasn't really there.


	18. Interlude

**Interlude:Midorikawa Retasu**

**

* * *

  
**

I hate this.

It's enough to drive me insane.

I know he can see me watching him,

As a matter of fact, I'm sure that's why he's doing it.

He knows I love him.

I hate that I'm in a limbo.

I wish I could just leave,

But I'm hoping that maybe he'll take me back.

I hate myself for being such a baby,

For not having done it earlier.

I hate that all I could do was slowly cut myself,

Try to hurt myself in another way.

I wish that I had killed myself when I had the chance.

I love him so much,

Yet he's forced my into a place far from the pleasure of dying.

I love him,

I want him,

I need him.

Why won't he just take me again,

And then let me leave forever?

* * *

**Interlude:Kurogawa Pai**

**

* * *

  
**

She cries to me,

I love you.

I keep walking,

I don't want her.

All I want is my sanity.

I don't want her love,

Her affection.

I don't want her in my house,

At my school,

In my life.

Her beauty has me thoroughly captivated,

Completely ensorcelled.

I love her,

I need her,

But I don't want her.

There are so many other fish in the sea,

I'm sure there's one for me.

Sometimes, I miss her rub,

Usually when it's another girl who's touching me.

Other girls don't compare,

They can't calm my eternal lust.

I have my own space now.

They flood it with the intent of fulfilling my desires.

None of them are the one that I need.

I can still perform,

But only when I pretend it's her.

She thinks I can't see her watching me on top of some other girl,

But I know she can.

I know that she hears their moans,

And I know that she stands there, crying.

None of them are as sweet as her,

Not in taste,

Not in scent.

Not in the way they look,

Not in the way they speak,

Not in the way they say my name.

They all think that because I mess around with them,

They get to call me by my given name.

At least she knows respect.

I hate that I want her fingers clawing my back,

But I'll just have to keep myself occupied.


	19. You Have Asked Me, And I Said Nothing

**Chapter Eighteen: You have asked me, and I have said nothing**

**A/N 8/22/10:** Hello all. Sorry for the delay. This chapter had frustrated me very much, and I have rewritten it many times, and yet I am still not satisfied. I am pleased that I was able to incorporate some of the imagery that I wanted to, but I'm still not too happy with it. However, I really wanted to upload this because many of you thought that the last chapter, _Interlude_ was the last one. It's actually more of a marker of the transition of the story, and the change of the relationship between Pai and Retasu.

I'm becoming irritated with this story because I realize that some of the pieces of the story don't coincide with earlier chapters, since I'm stupid and I never write out a timeline before I start a story. I always start from scratch, so I have to think out every chapter as I'm writing it. In addition, I have to deal with my very poor writing in the beginning of the story, and some of the plot twists that I had planned no longer work. x_x I hate myself.

Anyway, I hope to update more frequently in the future, but I might not be able to. I also apologize to everyone who I've never responded to. I just want you all to know that I read every single one of the reviews that I get, but due to the fact that I live in the middle of the woods with no internet access, I cannot spare enough time to respond to you all when I'm in town. I'm really sorry about this, and I'll try to respond more in the future.

_With love, Zenaga the Sea Serpent_

_

* * *

_

Retasu watched him, every time a girl went into his apartment. She watched him, seeing everything that he did to each and every girl spread out on the bed where she had her first time with him. She saw each and every bead of sweat dripping down his back as he reached a climax, and then sent every girl away. She saw every single time he turned to her, and then looked away, ignoring her tears.

She watched as Pai ran his fingers along the body of the girl he was currently enjoying, causing her to moan. She couldn't take it anymore.

"Kurogawa-senpai." Retasu said. He looked at her briefly, and then returned to what he was doing. "Stop it." She growled. However, he simple ignored her and continued pleasuring the girl underneath him. "Stop it, Kurogawa-senpai." She said more loudly. Still no response.

"I know you can hear me!" She cried, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I just want to talk to you!" He still ignored her. "I know that you think I'll just go quietly into the night, but I won't!" She yelled, wiping her tears away.

"What's wrong?" the girl underneath Retasu's lost love asked, noticing that Pai had stopped. Relief swept over Retasu as she waited for Pai to send the girl away. Alas, that moment never came, because he started up again, more ferociously this time. Retasu froze and stared at him, her fists clenched.

"Fine! You've forced my hand!" She yelled as she stormed over to the bed, ripping the sheet from the bed. The girl screamed as she was pulled off the bed by Retasu and wrapped up in the sheet, being strangled by the enraged phantom. The girl kept screaming as Retasu curled her body around the girl, covering her mouth.

"Stop it, Retasu! I'll talk to you, just let her go!" He yelled as Retasu glared back at him. She grudgingly released the girl and allowed her to untangle herself from the sheet, sobbing. The girl stared up at Pai as Retasu stood up behind her.

"Kurogawa-senpai… what's going on…?" The girl sobbed, her eyes wide. "What just happened to me?" She hiccupped. Pai said nothing, but simply stared at Retasu, his eyes wide with rage.

"You should leave. Now." He growled. The girl drew back, frightened. Obediently, she stood up and got her clothes on, exiting the room without a word. Pai and Retasu stood staring at each other for a few minutes until Pai bent down, pulled on his clothes and sat down on his bed.

"Why won't you leave me alone?" He growled, rubbing his temples, his eyes shut.

"I need you." She said plainly, unmoving. Pai let out a cynical laugh as he glared up at her, clenching his hands in rage.

"I hear those words every day. I'm tired of them." He hissed angrily. Retasu looked at him blankly, saying nothing. "You so frequently beg for my attention, and yet you have nothing to say." He stood up, walking towards the door. Tears began to roll down her pink cheeks again as Pai left, slamming the door behind him. After a moment, she followed him, not even bothering to open the door. She simply walked through it, following him into the kitchen.

"Kurogawa-senpai…" She began, Pai looking over his shoulder at her. "Why are you so cold?" He said nothing, but simply stared out the kitchen window. "Do you not care about me anymore?" Pai shook his head, cradling it his in his palms.

"I'm going crazy." He said quietly, still shaking his head. "Retasu is not standing in my kitchen. She's at the hospital, in a coma."

"Do you even care about me anymore?"

"At the hospital…"

"I still love you, more than anything."

"Drowned in the pool…"

Retasu paused, staring at him blankly.

"Do you want to know who wanted to kill me?"

Pai whipped around, wide eyed.

"You know?"

"Of course."

"Who did it?"

"There's one who has the evidence, but she won't want to tell you."

Pai paused to look at her for a moment before he exited the kitchen, making his way to the bathroom. As he entered the small, green room made for the purpose of cleansing, he stared at himself in the toothpaste-splattered mirror. He touched the bags under his eyes, pondering Retasu's death.

_Why would anyone kill her?_ He thought as he moved his hand down to the hickey on his neck. Grabbing a washcloth, he turned on the sink to wash his face. Not bothering to shut of the water, he pressed the cool washcloth to his face. As he removed the cloth, he stared in alarm at the other figure that had appeared in the mirror. "Retasu," he began nervously as he set down the washcloth on the counter. "What are you doing with that?"

Retasu looked blankly at the hooked knife that she cradled in her hand. Pai stood, motionlessly staring at her through the reflection as she made her way towards him. Very gently, she slid the knife up until it pressed gently against his neck. Not daring to speak, he watched her very carefully.

"I love you, Kurogawa-senpai." She said plainly as she pressed the knife into his neck, puncturing the skin. Pai tried not to flinch as he watched his own blood slowly seep from his neck. After Retasu quietly watched him bleed for a minute or so, she slowly pulled the knife away from him, setting it down on the counter. Although he had been through much worse pain, Pai certainly didn't enjoy the painful throbbing sensation. Placing her hand on his shoulder, she turned him towards her, away from the mirror. He stared at her blankly, attempting to mask his fear.

"I love you, Kurogawa-senpai." She repeated, pulling away the knife she observed the trickle of blood flowing down his neck. "I don't understand why you would leave me." He watched as her emotionless expression shifted to one of sadness. "I thought you loved me." Slowly, Pai put his hands on her shoulders, wanting to pull her closer.

"You're not real." He growled as she stared up at him, her eyes wide in shock. Pai frowned. "Well, you're real, but you're not really standing in front of me. This is all in my head." Placing her hands on his shoulders as well, she frowned, tears forming in her eyes.

"Why are you doing this to me?" She hissed, her grip tightening. "How do I know that you're not lying to try to get me to leave? How do I know that you're not pretending to be crazy so that I'll go away?" Pai stared down at her, his gaze steady.

"You're in a coma. This is all in my head." He said, his voice not wavering. Retasu's expression disappeared as she moved her hands down to his chest.

"Let's see if this is in your head." She growled as she shoved him backwards. Pai cried out as he tried to regain his balance, but his feet slipped on the pool of water that had formed at his feet from the overflowing sink. As he crashed into the mirror behind him, the glass shattered, falling all around him as he fell to the ground, his head throbbing.

His vision becoming spotted, he looked up at Retasu, who was staring blankly at him. His vision started to go black as he watched her turn and exit the room _Why? Why, Retasu?_ And then, everything went black.

The next time that Pai awoke, he was lying in a hospital bed.


End file.
